Carnegie Mellon University

President and CEO, Congress for the New Urbanism, Chicago, IL

Bio

John Norquist was hired President and CEO of the Congress of the New Urbanism in 2003. He works to promote New Urbanism as an alternative to sprawl and antidote to sprawl’s social and environmental problems.

Mr. Norquist was the Mayor of Milwaukee from 1988 to 2004. Under his leadership, Milwaukee experienced a decline in poverty, saw a boom in new downtown housing, and became a leading center of education and welfare reform. He has overseen a revision of the city’s zoning code and reoriented development around walkable streets and public amenities such as the city’s 3.1-mile Riverwalk. He has drawn widespread recognition for championing the removal of a .8 mile stretch of elevated free­way, clearing the way for an anticipated $250 million in in.ll development in the heart of Milwaukee.

A leader in national discussions of urban design and educational issues, Mr. Norquist is the author of The Wealth of Cities, and has taught courses in urban policy and urban planning at the University of Chicago, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee School of Architecture and Urban Planning, and at Marquette University. Mr. Norquist served in the Army Reserves from 1971 to 1977, and earned his undergraduate and master’s degrees from the University of Wisconsin. He represented Milwaukee’s south and west sides in the Wisconsin Legislature. He has also chaired the National League of Cities Task Force on Federal Policy and Family Poverty and served on the Amtrak Reform Council.